Judge to rule on whether Scott Peterson gets evidence he wants
REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - It's now up to a judge to decide whether convicted murderer Scott Peterson will get evidence his attorneys believe will prove he didn't kill his pregnant wife Laci and their unborn son.
Judge Elizabeth Hill of San Mateo County Superior Court has up to 90 days to issue a ruling, after two days of arguments in her Redwood City courtroom.
Peterson is serving a life sentence but insists he is innocent. His attorney, Los Angeles Innocence Project director Paula Mitchell, urged Hill to order Stanislaus County prosecutors to hand over certain pieces of evidence. The original murder trial was moved to Redwood City because of pretrial publicity.
"The prosecution has an affirmative duty to disclose exculpatory evidence to the defense," Mitchell said as Peterson monitored the proceedings remotely from Mule Creek State Prison in Amador County.
"We still, 22 years later, have not been provided with any information about that investigation or the recordings," Mitchell said at one point. Prosecutors countered that her avenue of inquiry was irrelevant to the killings.
The judge repeatedly tried to nail down exactly what the defense wants.
"I don’t want to order the prosecution to deliver you a multitude of documents that you already have in discovery, because that’s useful to no one," Hill said.
Ahnna Reicks, a Stanislaus County deputy district attorney told the judge, "The defense once again is asking the court to order a fishing expedition."
Reicks said just because the defense wants something doesn’t mean it should get it. She said Peterson's requests have nothing to do with the murders he committed.
"The defense is asking ‘what if? This may have happened. It could have,'" Reicks said, calling it "conjecture and speculation."
Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan
Featured
Scott Peterson seeks original evidence to prove innocence
Convicted murderer Scott Peterson was back in a Redwood City courtroom Monday as his attorneys battled prosecutors over access to evidence he believes will prove his innocence.